PUBLIC EDUCATION CHANGES

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AN ACT
RELATING TO PUBLIC SCHOOLS; AMENDING THE PUBLIC SCHOOL
FINANCE ACT; REQUIRING SCHOOL DISTRICTS AND CHARTER SCHOOLS
TO REPORT MEMBERSHIP ESTIMATES OF STUDENTS TO BE ENROLLED AS
DISTANCE LEARNING STUDENTS; REQUIRING SCHOOL DISTRICTS AND
CHARTER SCHOOLS TO MAINTAIN CERTAIN RECORDS REGARDING
STUDENTS ENROLLED IN A DISTANCE LEARNING PROGRAM; EXCLUDING A
SCHOOL DISTRICT'S MEMBERSHIP OF STUDENTS ENROLLED IN DISTANCE
LEARNING PROGRAMS FROM THE CALCULATION FOR SIZE ADJUSTMENT
PROGRAM UNITS; AMENDING THE STATEWIDE CYBER ACADEMY ACT AND
RENAMING THAT ACT THE "DISTANCE LEARNING ACT"; REMOVING
EXISTING DEFINITIONS AND DEFINING NEW TERMS IN THE PUBLIC
SCHOOL FINANCE ACT AND THE DISTANCE LEARNING ACT; REMOVING
THE REQUIREMENT THAT THE STATEWIDE CYBER ACADEMY BE A
COLLABORATIVE PROGRAM; PROVIDING ALL-NEW REQUIREMENTS FOR
SCHOOL DISTRICTS AND CHARTER SCHOOLS THAT OPERATE DISTANCE
LEARNING PROGRAMS; PLACING RESTRICTIONS ON STUDENT ENROLLMENT
IN DISTANCE LEARNING PROGRAMS AND PROVIDING EXCEPTIONS;
CLARIFYING THE REQUIREMENTS OF SCHOOL DISTRICTS AND CHARTER
SCHOOLS REGARDING DISTANCE LEARNING AND STUDENTS WITH
DISABILITIES; REQUIRING PUBLIC EDUCATION DEPARTMENT
EVALUATION OF DISTANCE LEARNING PROGRAMS; MAKING CONFORMING
AMENDMENTS; ENACTING TEMPORARY PROVISIONS RELATING TO THE
PUBLIC SCHOOL FINANCE ACT; ENACTING TEMPORARY PROVISIONS
RELATING TO THE DISTANCE LEARNING ACT; REPEALING SECTION
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22-30-8 NMSA 1978 (BEING LAWS 2007, CHAPTER 292, SECTION 7
AND LAWS 2007, CHAPTER 293, SECTION 7); DECLARING AN
EMERGENCY.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:
SECTION 1. Section 22-8-2 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1978,
Chapter 128, Section 3, as amended) is amended to read:
"22-8-2. DEFINITIONS.--As used in the Public School
Finance Act:
A. "ADM" or "MEM" means membership;
B. "membership" means the total enrollment of
qualified students on the current roll of a class or school
on a specified day. The current roll is established by the
addition of original entries and reentries minus withdrawals.
Withdrawals of students, in addition to students formally
withdrawn from the public school, include students absent
from the public school for as many as ten consecutive school
days; provided that withdrawals do not include students who
are in need of intervention or who are chronically or
excessively absent;
C. "basic program ADM" or "basic program MEM"
means the MEM of qualified students but excludes the full-
time-equivalent MEM in early childhood education and three-
and four-year-old students receiving special education
services;
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D. "cost differential factor" is the numerical
expression of the ratio of the cost of a particular segment
of the school program to the cost of the basic program in
grades four through six;
E. "department" or "division" means the public
education department;
F. "distance learning student" means a qualified
student who receives full-time virtual instruction and is not
required to attend school at a school building;
G. "early childhood education ADM" or "early
childhood education MEM" means the full-time-equivalent MEM
of students attending approved early childhood education
programs;
H. "family income index rate" means the percentage
of students in a school district or charter school that is
identified as either extremely low income or very low income
by the family income index;
I. "full-time-equivalent ADM" or "full-time-
equivalent MEM" is that membership calculated by applying to
the MEM in an approved public school program the ratio of the
number of hours per school day devoted to the program to six
hours or the number of hours per school week devoted to the
program to thirty hours;
J. "operating budget" means the annual financial
plan and educational plan required to be submitted by a local
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school board or governing body of a state-chartered charter
school;
K. "performance measure" means a quantitative
indicator used to assess the output or outcome of an approved
program;
L. "performance target" means the expected level
of performance of a program's performance measure;
M. "program cost" is the product of the total
number of program units to which a school district is
entitled multiplied by the dollar value per program unit
established by the legislature;
N. "program element" is that component of a public
school system to which a cost differential factor is applied
to determine the number of program units to which a school
district is entitled, including MEM, full-time-equivalent
MEM, teacher, classroom or public school;
O. "program unit" is the product of the program
element multiplied by the applicable cost differential
factor;
P. "public money" or "public funds" means all
money from public or private sources received by a school
district or state-chartered charter school or officer or
employee of a school district or state-chartered charter
school for public use;
Q. "qualified student" means a public school
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student who:
(1) has not graduated from high school;
(2) is regularly enrolled in one-half or
more of the minimum course requirements approved by the
department for public school students; and
(3) in terms of age and other criteria:
(a) is at least five years of age prior
to 12:01 a.m. on September 1 of the school year;
(b) is at least three years of age at
any time during the school year and is receiving special
education services pursuant to rules of the department;
(c) except as provided in Subparagraph
(d) of this paragraph, has not reached the student's twenty-
second birthday on the first day of the school year; or
(d) has reached the student's twenty-
second birthday on the first day of the 2019-2020 school
year, is counted in a school district's or charter school's
MEM on the third reporting date of the 2018-2019 school year,
has been continuously enrolled in the same public school
since that reporting date and is still enrolled in that
school;
R. "rural population rate" means that proportion
of the total population within a school district's geographic
boundaries that lives in a rural area and not in an urban
area as defined by the United States census bureau;
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S. "staffing cost multiplier" means the teacher
cost index; and
T. "state superintendent" or "secretary" means the
secretary of public education or the secretary's designee."
SECTION 2. Section 22-8-12.1 NMSA 1978 (being Laws
1978, Chapter 128, Section 5, as amended) is amended to read:
"22-8-12.1. MEMBERSHIP PROJECTIONS AND BUDGET
REQUESTS.--
A. On or before October 15 of each year, each
local school board or governing body of a state-chartered
charter school shall submit to the department:
(1) an estimate for the succeeding fiscal
year of:
(a) the membership of qualified
students to be enrolled in the basic program;
(b) the membership of students to be
enrolled as distance learning students;
(c) the full-time-equivalent membership
of students to be enrolled in approved early childhood
education programs; and
(d) the membership of students to be
enrolled in approved special education programs;
(2) all other information necessary to
calculate program costs; and
(3) any other information related to the
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financial needs of the school district or state-chartered
charter school as may be requested by the department.
B. The information submitted pursuant to
Subsection A of this section shall be submitted on forms
prescribed and furnished by the department and in accordance
with the department's rules and procedures.
C. The department shall:
(1) review the financial needs of each
school district or state-chartered charter school for the
succeeding fiscal year;
(2) on or before September 1 of each year,
submit to the department of finance and administration, the
legislative finance committee and the legislative education
study committee the department's recommendations for:
(a) amendments to the public school
finance formula;
(b) appropriations for the succeeding
fiscal year to the public school fund; and
(c) appropriations for the succeeding
fiscal year for pupil transportation and instructional
materials; and
(3) on or before November 30 of each year,
submit to the department of finance and administration, the
legislative finance committee and the legislative education
study committee any adjustments to the department's
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recommendations for appropriations related to additional
enrollment growth program units pursuant to Section 22-8-23.1
NMSA 1978."
SECTION 3. Section 22-8-13 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1974,
Chapter 8, Section 3, as amended) is amended to read:
"22-8-13. REPORTS.--
A. Each public school shall keep accurate records
concerning membership in the public school.
B. The dates for which MEM is reported are as
follows:
(1) the first reporting date is the second
Wednesday in October of each year;
(2) the second reporting date is December 1
or the first working day in December of each year; and
(3) the third reporting date is the second
Wednesday in February of each year.
C. The superintendent of each school district or
head administrator of each state-chartered charter school
shall maintain the following reports for each reporting
period:
(1) the basic program MEM by grade in each
public school;
(2) the early childhood education MEM;
(3) the special education MEM in each public
school in class C and class D programs as defined in Section
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22-8-21 NMSA 1978;
(4) the number of class A and class B
programs as defined in Section 22-8-21 NMSA 1978;
(5) the full-time-equivalent MEM for
bilingual multicultural education programs; and
(6) the distance-learning-student MEM by
grade in each public school.
D. The superintendent of each school district and
the head administrator of each state-chartered charter school
shall furnish all reports required by law or the department
to the department on or before the close of each reporting
period or as otherwise requested by the department. Failure
of the department to approve timely submissions shall not
cause a school district or charter school to be found
noncompliant with the requirements of this section.
E. For purposes of this section, "working day"
means every calendar day excluding Saturdays, Sundays and
legal holidays.
F. The information required pursuant to this
section shall be submitted in a manner prescribed by the
department. A copy of any report made pursuant to this
section shall be kept as a permanent record of the school
district or charter school and shall be subject to inspection
and audit at any reasonable time.
G. The department may withhold up to one hundred
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percent of allotments of funds to any school district or
state-chartered charter school where the superintendent or
head administrator has failed to comply with the requirements
of this section. The withholding may continue until the
superintendent or head administrator complies with and agrees
to continue complying with the requirements of this section.
H. The provisions of this section may be modified
or suspended by the department for any school district,
school or state-chartered charter school operating under the
Variable School Calendar Act. The department shall require
MEM reports consistent with the calendar of operations of
such school district, school or state-chartered charter
school and shall calculate an equivalent MEM for use in
projecting school district or charter school revenue."
SECTION 4. Section 22-8-23 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1975,
Chapter 119, Section 1, as amended by Laws 2019, Chapter 206,
Section 14 and by Laws 2019, Chapter 207, Section 14) is
amended to read:
"22-8-23. SIZE ADJUSTMENT PROGRAM UNITS.--
A. An approved public school with a MEM of fewer
than four hundred, including early childhood education full-
time-equivalent MEM but excluding membership in class C and
class D programs and excluding full-time-equivalent
membership in three- and four-year-old developmentally
disabled programs, that is geographically located in a school
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district with fewer than two thousand MEM, is eligible for
additional program units. Separate schools established to
provide special programs, including vocational and
alternative education, shall not be classified as public
schools for purposes of generating size adjustment program
units. The number of additional program units to which a
school district or charter school is entitled under this
subsection is the sum of elementary-junior high units and
senior high units computed in the following manner:
Elementary-Junior High Units
200 - MEM
_________ x 1.0 x MEM = Units
200
where MEM is equal to the membership of an approved
elementary or junior high school, including early childhood
education full-time-equivalent membership but excluding
membership in class C and class D programs and excluding
full-time-equivalent membership in three- and four-year-old
developmentally disabled programs;
Senior High Units
200 - MEM
_________ x 2.0 x MEM = Units
200
or,
Senior High Units
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400 - MEM
_________ x 1.6 x MEM = Units
400
whichever calculation for senior high units is higher, where
MEM is equal to the membership of an approved senior high
school, excluding membership in class C and class D programs.
B. An approved public school with a MEM of fewer
than four hundred, including early childhood education full-
time-equivalent MEM but excluding MEM in class C and class D
programs and excluding full-time-equivalent MEM in three- and
four-year-old developmentally disabled programs,
geographically located in a school district with two thousand
MEM or more is eligible for additional program units computed
in the following manner:
(1) for fiscal year 2020, eighty percent of
the sum of elementary-junior high units and senior high units
as prescribed in Subsection A of this section;
(2) for fiscal year 2021, sixty percent of
the sum of elementary-junior high units and senior high units
as prescribed in Subsection A of this section;
(3) for fiscal year 2022, forty percent of
the sum of elementary-junior high units and senior high units
as prescribed in Subsection A of this section;
(4) for fiscal year 2023, twenty percent of
the sum of elementary-junior high units and senior high units
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as prescribed in Subsection A of this section; and
(5) for fiscal year 2024 and subsequent
fiscal years, no elementary-junior high units and senior high
units as prescribed in Subsection A of this section.
C. A school district with total MEM of fewer than
four thousand, including early childhood education full-time-
equivalent MEM, is eligible for additional program units.
The number of additional program units to which a school
district is entitled under this subsection is the number of
district units computed in the following manner:
District Units
4,000 - MEM
___________ x 0.15 x MEM = Units
4,000
where MEM is equal to the total district membership,
including early childhood education full-time-equivalent
membership.
D. A school district with a MEM of fewer than two
hundred, including early childhood education full-time-
equivalent MEM, is eligible for additional program units if
the department certifies that the school district has
implemented practices to reduce scale inefficiencies,
including shared service agreements with regional education
cooperatives or other school districts for noninstructional
functions and distance education. The numbers of additional
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program units to which a school district is entitled under
this subsection is the number of units computed in the
following manner:
200 - MEM = Units
where MEM is equal to the total district MEM, including early
childhood education full-time-equivalent MEM.
E. A school district with a rural population rate
greater than forty percent or a charter school initially
chartered before July 1, 2018 and geographically located in a
school district with a rural population rate greater than
forty percent is eligible for additional program units. The
number of additional program units to which a school district
or charter school is entitled pursuant to this subsection is
determined by multiplying the full-time-equivalent MEM by the
rural population rate and the cost differential factor of
0.15; provided that the full-time-equivalent MEM used for
this determination does not include membership derived from
distance learning students."
SECTION 5. Section 22-30-1 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 2007,
Chapter 292, Section 1 and Laws 2007, Chapter 293, Section 1)
is amended to read:
"22-30-1. SHORT TITLE.--Chapter 22, Article 30 NMSA
1978 may be cited as the "Distance Learning Act"."
SECTION 6. Section 22-30-2 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 2007,
Chapter 292, Section 2 and Laws 2007, Chapter 293, Section 2)
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is amended to read:
"22-30-2. DEFINITIONS.--As used in the Distance
Learning Act:
A. "distance learning course" means an educational
course provided through virtual instruction;
B. "distance learning student" means a qualified
student in accordance with the provisions of the Public
School Finance Act who is enrolled in a full-time distance
learning program; and
C. "full-time distance learning program" means a
public school instructional program in which students receive
virtual instruction and are not required to attend school at
a school building."
SECTION 7. Section 22-30-3 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 2007,
Chapter 292, Section 3 and Laws 2007, Chapter 293, Section 3)
is amended to read:
"22-30-3. STATEWIDE CYBER ACADEMY CREATED.--The
"statewide cyber academy" is created as a program in the
department. The statewide cyber academy may provide distance
learning courses for sixth grade through twelfth grade and
professional development for teachers, instructional support
providers and school administrators."
SECTION 8. Section 22-30-4 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 2007,
Chapter 292, Section 4 and Laws 2007, Chapter 293, Section 4)
is amended to read:
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"22-30-4. DEPARTMENT RULES.--The department shall
promulgate rules to carry out the provisions of the Distance
Learning Act."
SECTION 9. Section 22-30-5 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 2007,
Chapter 292, Section 5 and Laws 2007, Chapter 293, Section 5)
is amended to read:
"22-30-5. FULL-TIME DISTANCE LEARNING PROGRAM--
DUTIES.--
A. A school district or charter school that offers
a full-time distance learning program shall:
(1) administer the program in compliance
with the Public School Code, including Section 22-2-8.1 NMSA
1978 regarding required instructional hours and Section
22-10A-20 NMSA 1978 regarding class load and teaching load
limits;
(2) administer the program in compliance
with state and federal law regarding student privacy, student
record confidentiality and secure student record storage;
(3) only provide distance learning courses
that are taught by licensed teachers or faculty members of
accredited post-secondary educational institutions and that
meet the department's academic content and performance
standards;
(4) on or before October 15 of each year,
notify the department as to the number of students enrolled
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in the program and the grade level of the enrolled students;
and
(5) maintain records of the district's or
charter school's expenditures related to the program and
furnish the records to the department at the department's
request and in the manner prescribed by the department.
B. A school district or charter school that
operates a full-time distance learning program shall not
expand the program to an additional grade level unless the
school district or charter school certifies to the department
that the program has sufficient courses for a full
instructional program for the additional grade level."
SECTION 10. Section 22-30-6 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 2007,
Chapter 292, Section 6 and Laws 2007, Chapter 293, Section 6)
is amended to read:
"22-30-6. DISTANCE LEARNING STUDENTS--ENROLLMENT.--
A. A school district shall not require a student
to enroll in a full-time distance learning program.
B. A charter school shall not require a student to
enroll in a full-time distance learning program.
C. The provisions of Subsections A and B of this
section do not apply to a school district or charter school
if temporary enrollment of the district's or charter school's
students in a full-time distance learning program is
necessary or appropriate during a public health emergency
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declared pursuant to the Public Health Emergency Response
Act."
SECTION 11. Section 22-30-7 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 2003,
Chapter 162, Section 2) is amended to read:
"22-30-7. DISTANCE LEARNING AND COMPUTER-BASED
COURSES.--A school district or charter school that has a
full-time distance learning program or offers distance
learning courses or other computer-based courses of study
shall provide accompanying instructional materials or other
materials in an electronic format usable by a person with a
disability or compatible with the person's assistive
technology."
SECTION 12. A new section of the Distance Learning Act
is enacted to read:
"DEPARTMENT EVALUATION OF PROGRAMS.--By the end of the
2028-2029 school year and at least every five years
thereafter, the department shall evaluate all full-time
distance learning programs to certify that the programs are
in compliance with the Public School Code and related rules,
including provisions related to instructional hours, class
load and teaching load limits. If the department determines
that a full-time distance learning program was not in
compliance during the period preceding the evaluation, the
department may withhold up to one hundred percent of
allotments of funding for distance learning students from the
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school district or state-chartered charter school that
operates the full-time distance learning program until the
local superintendent or head administrator submits, and the
department approves, a plan by which the school district or
state-chartered charter school will come into compliance with
the Public School Code and related rules."
SECTION 13. TEMPORARY PROVISIONS.--
A. For the purposes of the Public School Finance
Act in fiscal year 2026, a school district with MEM over
eight thousand whose MEM on the first reporting date of
fiscal year 2026 is at least ten percent lower than the
school district's MEM on the first reporting date of fiscal
year 2025 shall calculate the total number of program units
to which the school district is entitled by averaging the
school district's MEM on the first reporting date of fiscal
year 2025 and the school district's MEM on the first
reporting date of fiscal year 2026.
B. For the purposes of the Public School Finance
Act in fiscal years 2026 and 2027, a school district is not
eligible for enrollment growth program units pursuant to
Section 22-8-23.1 NMSA 1978 for students enrolled in a full-
time distance learning program.
C. For fiscal year 2027, a school district or
charter school shall not reorganize to create a school
district, school or school program that has a majority of
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students enrolled in a full-time distance learning program.
D. The legislative education study committee, in
collaboration with the legislative finance committee and the
public education department, shall conduct a comprehensive
study on virtual instruction in the state. The study shall
evaluate the status of full-time distance learning programs
or similar programs and assess the outcomes of students
enrolled in the programs, with particular focus on those
students who are in kindergarten through fifth grade, the
cost of operating the programs and potential legislative
action regarding full-time distance learning programs. On or
before November 1, 2026, the legislative education study
committee shall submit a final report on the comprehensive
study to the governor, the public education department and
the legislative finance committee.
E. As used in this section, "full-time distance
learning program" means a public school instructional program
in which students receive virtual instruction and are not
required to attend school at a school building.
SECTION 14. REPEAL.--Section 22-30-8 NMSA 1978 (being
Laws 2007, Chapter 292, Section 7 and Laws 2007, Chapter 293,
Section 7) is repealed.
SECTION 15. EFFECTIVE DATE.--The effective date of the
provisions of Sections 1 through 12 and 14 of this act is
July 1, 2026.
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SECTION 16. EMERGENCY.--It is necessary for the public
peace, health and safety that this act take effect
immediately.